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• For OPM reporting purposes we use the “Washington, DC; Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties in Maryland; Arlington and Fairfax counties; and the independent cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, and Falls Church in Virginia. (The same weather conditions will likely cover employees in these adjacent jurisdictions. Over 302, 000 employees work in the Washington, DC, area.)

2010-11 ANNOUNCEMENTSfor the “WASHINGTON, DC, Area Dismissal and Closure Procedures

• Telework may be required when the “Federal Offices Are Closed to the Public,” subject to agency policies, procedures, and collective bargaining agreements

Migration to New Telework Policy: To implement the new telework option, agencies should:

• Review current telework policies and agreements to ensure that telework is integrated as part of the flexibilities permitted during disruption of normal operating procedures

• Ensure that the IT infrastructure is in place to allow large numbers of employees to telework simultaneously

• Establish new written telework agreements for employees who can telework (ad hoc), but typically do not, and allow all employees who can telework to practice it frequently enough to maintain effectiveness and ensure functionality

• Introduce new telework agreements that will allow for telework during emergency situations

What Announcements Mean:

• Upon an announcement that Federal agencies are “OPEN WITH OPTION FOR UNSCHEDULED LEAVE OR UNSCHEDULED TELEWORK”, a telework-ready employee, ifpermitted by his or her agency’s policies, procedures, and collective bargaining agreements, may choose to perform unscheduled telework (in addition to unscheduled leave, which has already been available under the DC area procedures). The telework-ready employee must notify his or her supervisor of his or her intent to take either unscheduled leave or unscheduled telework. Using telework will help maintain productivity and help ensure safety.

• Unscheduled telework will also be available to a telework-ready employees when OPM announces the status of “OPEN – XX HOUR DELAYED ARRIVAL -WITH OPTION FOR UNSCHEDULED LEAVE OR UNSCHEDULED TELEWORK” in the Washington, DC, area, if permitted by their agency’s policies, procedures, and collective bargaining agreements. The telework-ready employee must notify his or her supervisor of his or her intent to telework on that day (parallel to the current procedures for unscheduled leave).

• When OPM announces that the Federal Government is “OPEN – XX HOUR EARLY DEPARTURE”, a telework-ready employee, if agency policies, procedures, and collective bargaining agreements permit, may depart prior to the scheduled early departure time without charge to annual leave, provided the employee makes up the time later in that day by teleworking.

• OPM is replacing “CLOSED” with “FEDERAL OFFICES ARE CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC” to emphasize that Government operations continue at the worksite or by teleworking, to the extent possible, but the public will not be permitted to enter Federal offices.

• When OPM announces “FEDERAL OFFICES ARE CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC”, non-emergency employees (including employees on pre-approved paid leave) will be granted excused absence (administrative leave) for the number of hours they were scheduled to workunless covered by an exception under their agency’s telework policy.